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Grand Ole Opry to assist in redevelopment of South Rampart Street into jazz district

New Orleans Jazz Orchestra at The Joy Theater

Leon "Kid Chocolate" Brown performs during the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra's Jazz Masters Concert featuring the music of Ellis Marsalis, Harold Battiste and James Black at The Joy Theater on Friday, June 21st, in New Orleans. (Erika Goldring Photo)

The Downtown Development District has been in talks for the past eight months with the operators of the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville to assist in the redevelopment of the 400 block of South Rampart Street into an entertainment district that would pay homage to its role in the birth and early history of jazz.

The project would preserve three historic buildings that played important roles in jazz great Louis Armstrong's early career and also include new buildings for live music clubs and restaurants.

DDD President and CEO Kurt Weigle, who made the announcement Tuesday at a meeting of the agency's executive committee, described the conversations with Grand Ole Opry as "very serious" and said construction could begin in 18 months.

"Grand Ole Opry knows the music business, they know how to create connections to musicians, and they know how to operate an entertainment businesses," Weigle said.

Grand Ole Opry would provide consultation services but would not be directly involved in the development of the project.

The 400 block of South Rampart, once known as "the Ramp," is considered by some as the birthplace of jazz, It includes several historic landmarks such as the recently renovated Little Gem Saloon, once a popular hangout for early jazzmen like Buddy Bolden and Jelly Roll Morton, at 445-449 S. Rampart St.; the Karnofsky store, 427 S. Rampart St., which served as a second home for the young Armstrong; the Iroquois Theater, 413 S. Rampart St., where Armstrong won a talent contest in "white face"; and the Eagle Saloon, 401 S. Rampart St., another popular hangout for early jazz musicians.

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The Karnofsky store and Iroquois Theater are currently owned by the Joseph Meraux Charitable Foundation. The Eagle Saloon is owned by the New Orleans Music Hall of Fame.

Weigle said the Meraux Foundation has been consulting the Grand Ole Opry on how best to proceed with the project.

To help pay for the consent decree and creating a new office to manage the privately financed details, the city is expected to raise the cost of paid details by $5 per hour per officer and between $5 and $10 per vehicle, Weigle said. This would increase the DDD's cost by 30 percent, he said. Last year the DDD spent nearly $500,000 to have two officers on duty in the Central Business District at any given time.

Committee members discussed several ways to handle the increased costs, such as purchasing two police vehicles at $34,000 per car that the DDD would own for five years and then transfer to the city.

(This story has been changed from its original version. Kurt Weigle initially said Opryland would be involved but corrected that statement to indicate it is Grand Ole Opry that will provide consulting services)